A few weeks ago whilst wandering around the area in which I live I came across this safe sitting outside of a building in a state of disuse.
My partner and I guessed that someone tried to steal it and failed.
I don’t have much to say about this image. It’s just something I found unusual and so I took the photo and decided to share it here.
I probably could’ve done a better job when it came to framing the shot.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy.
Maybe when it comes to trains this is actually moderate traffic.
On my way home from my Sydney CBD visit during the time when the water held in the sky was also visiting I thought that getting a shot of Dulwich Hill Station would be a good idea.
Whilst taking this shot someone near me said something to me about urbex that was either meant to express support or coolness of the idea of photography. I’m not sure as I wasn’t quite paying attention and only responded in the automatic when I corrected them and said I was just doing photography.
If you’re loose with urbex’s definition (which admittedly, depending on the day I’m fine with), then this kind of counts.
I don’t often see a cargo and commuter train at the same time so I’m glad I got them in this shot.
I like that two of the masts appears to be coming from the commuter train.
I also like the sense of space afforded by the overcast sky.
I think the rain has done a good job of increasing the contrast between light and shade, but overall I like this photo for how small it feels from capturing a simple, everyday scene.
I hope you enjoy.
Once more I found myself taking to the power of peddling and rode my bike most of the way to work on one particular day last week. It had been a while longer than I wanted, but last year was filled with more pressure than I’d have liked and some things went out the window, such as the mode of transport that I’m able to easily engage in which ends up saving me a bit of money whilst also giving me a bit of exercise, but that’s the way things go on the odd occasion.
I probably should have engaged in much more cycling last year regardless of the circumstances. Probably would’ve relieved a fair amount of the pressure, but I didn’t. It’s now in the past. I’m here in the present. I’ll survive. For now, anyway.
So I took to the iron steed and found myself lacking much more in the fitness department than I had hoped, but it was a good cycle. Kind of. I spent a lot of the ride thinking about things and now that I’m currently faced with the opportunity to cycle once more, I find myself hesitant to do so. Partly due to being sore, partly due to lack of sleep and partly due to laziness.
Perhaps I shouldn’t be so lazy right now, but I can always cycle tomorrow, or the day after, or the day after that. Preferably tomorrow, I guess. Right now it’s lazy time, though to be fair it does afford me the opportunity to spend a little bit more time reading and reading is what I want to do quite soon.
Anyway, this is not about how I feel right now. Today I am going to try and right about that cycle that I did last week; or, at least attempt to write about said cycle. Not sure as to how interesting I can make it, but I will try.
I went on a cycle that took me along The Cooks River and slowly made my way to Tempe Station. It was actually a little bit faster than slow, but it was slow enough due to tiring out pretty quickly due to not having cycle in a while.
Wait.
I didn’t tire out too fast. I was still doing alright by the time I reached the station. I actually did alright considering it had been more than a few months since the last cycle on which I had gone on, but I cannot deny that I had dropped in my fitness level that certainly made the ride more tiring than I had hoped.
That is to say that I did well enough and am probably overthinking the whole thing.
The Cooks River is an easy thing to cycle alongside as most of the gradients aren’t too steep; the ones that could be considered steep are only in relative to what else is along the river. Now that I think about it, maybe they are steep in general, but they’re also short so they’re not too bad.
Other than that, it’s a fairly flat ride. Unlike when I was working in St Leonards and cycling there, The Cooks River track is easy to glide and speed along when there are few people around. I guess in this case there are also few cars around as the path is mostly pedestrian and cycle traffic. There are times when you do have to cross a road, but those are easy enough.
What else is there that I can say about the cycle? I’m trying to think about this, but I’m struggling a little more than I anticipated.
I can talk about how I miss having panniers.
I still do have panniers, but without a functioning rack to put them on, they aren’t usable in the way that I would like to use them. They certainly would’ve come in handy for this particular ride.
Seeing as I was heading to work I had to pack a bit more which was fine. However, as it had been a while since I’d last carried that much weight on my back, I felt it a lot more. It wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences. It served as a reminder that, as soon as I’m once more earning enough to not be concerned about eating, I should probably buy a new bike rack for the panniers I have.
They did quite a lot when it came to shifting the weight off my back (naturally) without impacting my ability to cycle at what I felt was a reasonable speed too much. It probably also did a lot when it came to reducing the potential for future back injury. Not entirely sure on that one. Only time will tell.
With that all being said, it was worthwhile to get back on the bike. I think I’ve said this before; There’s a certain kind of freedom that cycling offers. When you get into a groove of regular cycling, it feels great. It can feel graceful and empowering. I strongly believe that if someone has the ability to cycle regularly, or at least learn how to followed by regular cycling, then they should. Of course there are some great benefits when it comes to health and strain on the wallet.
However, I think that the greatest reason to cycle is just how it can offer a lot of scenery and adventure in a way that other vehicles might not.
Well, I think I’ve said all that I can think of to say at this point. In conclusion, there should be more riding of the bikes. They’re great little vehicles that are probably more complex than they seem. Perhaps the best way to describe them would be as deceptively simple. Really not sure right now.
Perhaps they could be described as vehicles.
So yeah. The Ride along The Cooks River was fun. It reminded me I need to do more cycling, but today will not be a day featuring riding my bike.
The time it took to write one thousand words: 20:41:66
Whilst writing this there was a point where I felt as though I was going to get this finished really quickly. Apparently I was wrong.
I think it shows that I struggled. Still, I’m satisfied with what I wrote. Probably could’ve used less words, but I think I got across what I wanted to get across.
I’m still trying to get to a point where I’m doing one thousand words more frequently. Hopefully this year will see more writings of that length.
Written at home.
Taken during my trek through Sydney CBD whilst it was raining.
I came to a bridge that I had crossed before. I’m fairly certain I decided to go that bridge and get a photo of it once more due to it being a while since I was last on it and thus could see if I had improved as a photographer.
I think this was the best shot I got.
I like that you can see the rain affecting this scene in a few ways.
The view through the glass is a bit smeared, the reflection of the glass wall’s frame (as well as a few lights) becomes visible, and you can see some of the droplets hitting the walkway part of the bridge.
I find that this image draws me in and I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s the composition.
I think the shot is a bit moody which works with the rain. Maybe it’s due to the rain that it’s moody. Not sure.
This is also my submission into the eighty-fifth Lens-Artists Photo Challenge.
The theme for this one is “Treasure Hunt“.
This week’s challenge has a set of things that can count:
“Sunrise and/or sunset, Something cold and/or hot, a bird, a dog, a funny sign, a bicycle, a seascape and/or mountain landscape, a rainbow, a church, a musical instrument, a boat, a plane, a waterfall.”
There’s also these:
“An expressive portrait of one or more people, a very unusual place, knitting or sewing, a fish, an animal you don’t normally see, a bucket, a hammer, a street performer, a double rainbow, multiple challenge items in a single image.”
I think this image counts as rain can be cold. It can also be warm.
Now that I think about it, it’s the same with glass.
The challenge is hosted by four people and cycles weekly:
Week 1 – Patti
Week 2 – Ann-Christine aka Leya
Week 3 – Amy
Week 4 – Tina
This one is hosted by Tina. The next will be hosted by Patti.
I recommend giving the challenges a go and seeing how you interpret each theme. I also recommend checking out what other people are doing to meet the challenge.
I hope you enjoy.
There was the sound of a cicada a number of minutes ago, but it seems as though today is not going to carry their sweet summery sound through the air. Instead it’s going to be a day that appears gloomy and that’s fine with me as I have nowhere in particular that I need to be. Aside form a walk and some more recording of the podcast episodes, there’s little for me to do today.
Well, there is the writing of the words into a format that is readable, but other than that and the other things I have little on the proverbial plate and so I must make the most of my time in order to… make the most of my time, as they say, whoever they may be.
That’s not a path that I plan on going down this morning. Instead I will go down a path of knowledge.
Actually, I won’t go down that path either. What path shall I go down right? There are so many to choose from and I’m really not sure as to which one would be the most one I’d like to go down. I could choose at random, but that may be worse than trying to deduce what options there are. If I deduce, then surely I’d be able to make an educated guess. However, that might also prevent the spirit of adventure and discovery from taking over and then I’d not really be enjoying myself.
Do I really have to enjoy myself? Surely there are other things to get out of all of this other than the sense of enjoyment that enjoyment brings. There could be learning. There could be discovery. There could be the testing of one’s limits. There could be the realising that failure is still something to be gained from, depending on the level of failure of course.
There is the possibility of realising that none of this means that you could be the one to gain from the decision that you make. OF course, in this instance when I say “you”, I mean “me”, but it… anyway…
So I’ll sit down for a bit longer, trying to get comfortable in this seat that lost its ability to provide comfort a while ago. Still is comfortable to some extent, but there are better chairs out there.
I’ll sit a bit longer and work out all that it is that I’m trying to do, find the right path for my morning, or perhaps not take any path at all as there is nothing to say that I have to take a path. Instead I could choose to sit at the stump of the crossroads and just relax for a little while.
Though with that all being said realistically all that it is is me being paralysed by indecision and instead of picking a path at random, just choosing to do nothing, which is easier, but also far less productive right now.
Seems like too many choices this morning.
The time it took to write five-hundred words: 06:54:66
Not a bad speed. Really not sure what to make of this one. I think there’s something interesting in it. Maybe.
Written at home.
This shot probably shows weather creating a sense of distance better than the last one I shared.
I think it also gives a better idea of Sydney Harbour Bridge’s size relative to most of the objects in this shot.
I don’t quite think this photo has a sense of quiet or stillness, but something else that’s quite similar. I don’t think I know the word to describe what I’m saying. That said it probably is a blend of quiet and stillness and I’m looking for something else. Not quite sure.
I feel as though this is an expansive scene, what with the width, sense of distance and the framing.
I like the variability of architecture as it provides a minor sense of history.
I hope you enjoy.
Well, it’s one of those mornings where I’m awake. I’ve been awake for too long, though how long is long, really?
Not sure. Don’t care. Just want to get on and speed ahead of the competition, but I need to find the competition first. However, so long as I apply for the academy that does not want the meaning, then I’m sure that I can get to where it needs to be and thus I’ll face off against all that which holds me back, but these are of course themes I’ve gone on about in the past and thus I shall try to abstain from them.
There needs to be some sort of glut of prevention of the ignorance that so readily wants to grasp at and control people for it is drawing ever nearer to the heart of all things and when it gets there, then it may be too late to stop its spread from increasing to an unstoppable amount.
There needs to be love and harmony and all those other things. There needs to be information. More information should probably be available to the public so that they are more able to learn and hopefully understand and grapple with the text so that awareness will be greater and ideas that, based on the information at hand are considered ill-informed can be more easily challenged. Technical language is important but still there needs to be translation so that everybody can understand what needs to be understood rather than just a select few.
Education is always important. Both education by the self and from others leads to greater amounts of information stored within the data processing units we refer to as brains. Knowing more about what needs to be challenged also requires knowing more about what needs to be used to challenge what needs to be challenged. There’s a bit going on there. Often people end up specialising for these reasons, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have a larger pool of general knowledge.
Same with specific knowledge, now that I think about it.
What am I trying to say with all of this? Well, I think there are some things out there that need to be challenged. There’s a lot of information out there, but more of it should be available to the public. There probably is more than enough available at the moment, but cherry picking is a popular pastime for far too may out there.
Perhaps some are doing so without realising.
I guess the other thing to fight growing ignorance is that people need to be willing to be wrong. They need to be willing to accept new information that may challenge what they understand. I think that a lot of people believe that they are but actually aren’t due to how quickly they’ll put up a defense.
Maybe I’m viewing it incorrectly. Don’t know. To be honest I don’t think I’m awake enough to grapple with my own thought right now.
Maybe another time.
The time it took to write five-hundred words: 08:49:11
Well, this was a bit more serious than what I thought I’d come up with.
Written at home.
My camera underwent a bit of inundation from the rain when I took this shot.
Not sure if I think it was worth it. There was a bit of cropping I had to do. I preferred the original full-sized image, but the way it is now creates stronger focus on the main elements, I think.
I like how the rain makes Sydney Harbour Bridge appear faded as it creates a stronger sense of distance.
The low levels of traffic are fine, though there still might be too much. It prevents the image from feeling wholly quiet which I would have preferred, but there isn’t so much that the image feels overly busy.
This is my submission into Leanne Cole‘s “Monochrome Madness” for this week.
I suggest checking out Leanne’s photography, as well as checking out what other people submit.
A lot of what people are submitting will likely end up here.
I hope you enjoy.
Now I was thinking about getting something out into the air, but then when I started realising it all seemed to go away and now I’m stuck with my thoughts floating on by and my inability to grapple with them. All I can do is watch an d hope that some come back to me, but it seems more and more unlikely with each passing moment.
What am I to do but bear witness to the scene at hand. I’m really not sure about all of this, to be honest. I guess I can keep on watching; after all, that is what I’m expecting of myself. However, I’d rather not. I’d rather engage with my thoughts and work out how to best translate them into something more tangible. Really not sure how, however. They are all the way over there, and all I am is here and present and watching like a witness to a spectacle, except the spectacle is not one of any interest to those other than myself. It’s a shame, really.
That said, it could all be worse, of course. It can always be worse and it seems to be getting worse. Not necessarily for me, but for others. I’m pretty lucky at the moment.
Well, that’s what I’m telling myself as currently my work situation is going to shit and I’m struggling a lot more than I’m comfortable admitting, but I guess all I can do is keep on pushing on and hope for the best.
On a completely unrelated note, there’s a link on Stupidity Hole where you can buy some of my photography as prints and other physical objects. You can also support my (and others’) review work on the Culture Eater Patreon, which also has a link on this little space in the Internet.
Yes, that fits in nicely with today’s bit of writing. Not awkward or sudden at all.
Anyway, with that all being said, I need to find a way to get to my thoughts. Maybe I can coerce them to come back to me. Maybe that is something possible. Maybe it is not. I’m really not sure about that one, to be honest.
Still, I must try. I must try collating and trying to organise everything into an order that will make some sort of sense to me so that I can then get onto the grappling of them and hope that I am able to have them be reabsorbed into my being so that once more I will have them right where they’re meant to reside, but of course if they’re floating away they’re still inside and might just hit what I hope is an impermeable barrier, thus causing them to come back to me and limiting the work and effort that I need to put in in order to engage with their being, which I feel is a massive boon in my favour.
Maybe it’s not, but there are other things at hand and foot, though not always.
The time it took to write five-hundred words: 06:54:54
I wasn’t sure about sharing this what with the mentioning of the need for money followed by the mentioning of being able to buy my stuff. It’s something I still feel uncomfortable about as I feel like I’m asking for money. However, it’s what came out and I feel fine enough with the rest of the writing, though maybe I’ll take this down one day.
Written at work.
This is a review I started back in August (I think). Maybe September.
I put it aside due to other reviews and uni.
When we were a few episodes into Podcast Eater (the Culture Eater podcast) Bren & I decided to do one about A Short Hike. I felt that it would be a good idea to finish off the review around then, but once more it fell by the wayside.
I’ve spent a good chunk of Sunday, yesterday and today working on finishing the review.
I think that once more I was too clinical, but in this case I’m not too fussed as I covered just about everything I wanted to cover, and I feel that the review reads smoothly for the most part.
Next time I’ll need to try and be a little less clinical.
As with most of my review and interview work, this is also on Culture Eater.
My colleague and I set up a Patreon to further develop Culture Eater as a source of good quality arts coverage from both ourselves and our contributors.
We’re looking at what we can give to supporters as we don’t want to set up a one way relationship, so suggestions are welcome. Podcast Eater is one of the things we’ve got going. At the moment it comes out fortnightly, though we are looking to go weekly. Please consider supporting, or at least sharing the Patreon page with others.
Please also check out what our wonderful contributors are contributing.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy.
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At the end of July last year I purchased A Short Hike on its Steam release day. I saw it on special, thought it looked appealing, bought it and dug right in.
Whilst brief, it gave me strong feelings of joy and wonder as I explored its setting.
Before I go on, if you are considering playing A Short Hike, then please play it before reading this if you can. You’ll likely get more out of it knowing as little as possible than reading about it beforehand. The game is available both on Steam and Itch.io.
Now with that out of the way, here’s the review:
A Short Hike opens with a car driving during the evening. There’s a short conversation, then the scene shifts to a small house near a beach in Hawk Peak Provincial Park.
Claire (the main character) is waiting on a phone call. Your aunt – one of the park rangers – advises that there’s no reception down where they are, but you might be able to get some at Hawk Peak’s peak.
Whilst the game tells you that your goal is vertically based, you don’t have to spend much time climbing. Ultimately the goal is up, but a lot of the game’s ground movement involves horizontal and angular traversal rather than just pure climbing.
The reason for this is due to Hawk Peak Provincial Park’s layout. Whilst it’s a somewhat-compact island, there’s a fair bit of space for exploration. Considering A Short Hike is based around going on a hike, it’s a good setup as you can either follow a path or wander around and still find a way to the mountaintop. Either choice is fine; one just has a bit more sightseeing on the way.
When you get close to your goal the traversal becomes more vertical-oriented, but there still is some room for exploration, and by extension options for reaching the peak.
There’s a decent amount of npcs found throughout Hawks Peak Provincial Park. A few of them are going on their own journey and it’s nice to see them progress as you explore; others stick to a specific area, with some relaxing and others running about. It gives a sense that the island sees a few visitors without making it feel overcrowded.
The npcs have a few different lines to go through before one repeats. A lot of it is pretty lighthearted and charming; there’s room for small humour and silliness, and a fair few pep talk lines sprinkled in. Some characters say ridiculous stuff and some say things that feel grounded. The dialogue can be a bit too obvious (mostly the pep talk stuff), but in general it’s nothing amazing which works in A Short Hike‘s favour.
This is not a game with room for fantastic dialogue. Along with their actions (and sometimes lack thereof), the npcs saying stuff that’s often believable helps make them feel like they belong in the setting.
The art style employs pixelation on what seems to be cel shading influenced by some handheld games of the past. It works for the world it presents as it mixes well with the vibrant colours, leading to a number of areas having an inviting and warm feel.
Whilst the pixelation is a nice touch, it’s good to know that there are options to adjust its level. It’s appreciable but it’s easy to see why someone might not find the pixelation easy on the eyes.
The areas themselves are fun to explore due to their size and simple-looking layout. They often look much like what they are; beaches look like beaches, woods look like woods, and so on; Just on a smaller scale. It’s easy to get through an area without it overstaying its welcome. It’s also just as easy to spend a bit of time moving through an area, looking for hidden stuff as you don’t often have to spend much time searching.
Whilst the music shifts around based on where you are, it doesn’t match the environment so much as it matches the mood. It’s often relaxing and builds on A Short Hike‘s overall pleasantness in a way that makes it difficult to think of music that would work better.
When it comes to moving around A Short Hike‘s island, there’s very little you need to know. You can run, (once unlocked) sprint, jump, midair jump, climb and glide. Getting a handle on the movement is easy enough, though sometimes a shifting camera angle can throw you off. It’s all you ever need as well. The island’s design makes it easy enough for these to get you around quickly enough; especially when you start working with your movement options.
Whilst most movement options are free, golden feathers determine how long you can sprint, climb and midair jump. You get more golden feathers by finding them throughout the island and through side events. They’re easy enough to come across and having more means greater ease of exploration.
As all of your golden feathers stay visible on the lower left at all times, it’s easy enough to gauge how much farther you can go. However, along with context-sensitive reminders, they can take you out of the world a little bit. It’s useful information, but it would’ve been nice if it was on Claire instead.
It’s the same with the context-sensitive reminders. If we know that we can talk to npcs or find certain items when close enough, then a prompt is unnecessary. Not having anything trigger other than the regular action should be enough of a tell. Considering that in this case the regular action is jumping, having a separate button for context-sensitive actions would’ve been useful.
I feel that there are a few reasons that show these were unnecessary concessions; the main one being fishing. Fishing does have some hud displays, but those mostly have to do with equipping the fishing rod and looking at a log book.
You can fish in just about any body of water. It’s a matter of having bait and casting your rod. The float moving slightly and suddenly signifies a fish biting. You know you’ve hooked something when the float goes underwater. If you can’t see the float, the accompanying plopping sound also tells you whether a fish is biting or hooked.
From there, you reel the fish in by pressing the action button and moving away from it. Rather than show a metre, the sound of the reel tells you how close you are to pulling a fish out of water.
Fishing is one of the best parts of A Short Hike not because of how simple and easy it is to do; Fishing is one of the best parts of A Short Hike as everything you need to know so you can fish exists within the setting. Having a small popup when you catch a fish is unfortunate. Perhaps it is Claire logging the fish in the log book. That said, anything outside of the world’s context is minimal.
It’s quite possible that Adam Robinson-yu tried to find a way to avoid having golden feathers and prompts for context-sensitive actions and felt that this was a better option. However, I have to admit that this is a rather minor issue with what is overall a well-crafted work.
It’s a work that doesn’t present itself as trying to be anything more than a relaxing and fun experience. The plot offers just enough to get you going and provides some emotive moments whilst remaining out of the way for most of the game. Hawks Peak Provincial Park is enjoyable to explore and wander around, and feels like a real park. The npc’s designs and personalities are a great inclusion as they – along with the island – add a lot of flavour to the game.
A Short Hike is small, but engaging. It would be nice to have a bit more content, but its size is fine. It is a game about going on a short hike, after all; one full of joy and wonder.
Stupidity Hole 